Japan/China: Textbook War Round 2

China protests -- correctly -- that Japanese textbooks don't accurately tell of Japan's attrocities in World War II, and that the country therefore is raising a generation that lacks the perspective gained by the lessons of history.

But is China doing any better? Of course not! This is a Communist government, whether or not the 21st Century is "China's Century," so information control is central policy.

The LATimes reports today:

When Li Xuanyao, a student at Beijing's No. 55 Middle School, wants to learn about the Great Leap Forward, she has her work cut out for her. Mao Tse-tung's disastrous 1950s policy, which saw 30 million Chinese die of starvation, is relegated to a few paragraphs in her 163-page history textbook.

The text blames bad central planning for its failure and is quick to add: "During the Great Leap Forward, every village in China built its commune. Members of the commune could eat in its dining hall free of charge."

Although Xuanyao's history teachers have taught her a lot about Japanese atrocities, she said, they are reluctant to talk about the Great Leap Forward. And they never mention the deadly Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.

The fact of the matter is that as bad as the Rape of Nanking was, the Chinese Communists have been responsible for the deaths of far more Chinese than the Japanese were. But you don't see this in China's textbooks, and you won't -- because the world isn't pressuring for it, and the Chinese wouldn't give in, even if they were.

The stakes for Beijing are too high. A little truth would uncover how poorly the Communists have treated their own people, how they have blamed others (capitalists, Japanese, Soviets) for thier own shortcomings, and how corrupt the leadership is.

Beijing has turned off the anti-Japan demonstrations. Perhaps they read warnings here that they could easily get out of hand. But they're not going to be able to turn off the internet, letters from relatives overseas, text messages, radio broadcasts and all the other ways their people, hungry for more freedom, will get the goods on Beijing.

See also:
Beijing and the Tiananmen Teapot
China-Japan Demons At Play
Chinese Snuff Out Internet Dissent
How Will Chinese Stop the Riots?